Arvind Kejriwal uses legislation to loosen red tape

Till January 2000, Arvind Kejriwal was a conscientious joint commissioner of income tax who enjoyed every minute of his job. An IIT Kharagpur graduate, he hadn't imagined he would abhor policing economic offenders within eight years of his joining the Indian Revenue Service. But a routine departmental transfer and the "lackadaisical approach of the government" made him look for a new role.

Kejriwal, then 31, took a sabbatical before deciding to devote himself to improving accountability in governance. What sets him apart from others with similar goals is the manner in which he used the Right to Information (RTI) Act to reform administration in Delhi. "I felt people who didn't want to pay bribes needed an option," he says, recalling the objective behind Parivartan, a six-member action group he launched to fight corruption in the Delhi Vidyut Board.

Once the Delhi Assembly passed the RTI Act in 2001, the group began spreading awareness about the law in 15 resettlement colonies and other middle-class pockets in the nation's capital. The movement has had many successes, from streamlining of power connections and road connectivity to regulation of ration shops and hand pumps.